ForexLive Asia-Pacific FX news wrap: Trump 'won't fire Powell' comment: Equities & USD up

• Federal Reserve speakers on Wednesday include Goolsbee, Waller, Hammack and Musalem
• Shanghai Gold exchange has increased the trade margin for some gold futures contracts
• Learn Invesgting: Liquidity Ratios
• Japan economy minister Akazawa could visit U.S. for tariff talks as early as April 30
• ECB's Lane, Knot, and Cipollone speaking on Wednesday, April 23, 2025
• BMW will integrate DeepSeek’s AI into its new vehicles sold in China from late 2025.
• Learn to Invest: Stock Valuation
• USD retracing its earlier Trump comments gains, equity indexes not so much
• Learn Investing: Profitability Ratios
• Bank of England speakers Wednesday include governor Bailey, Pill, Breeden
• Learn Investing: Link the 3 Important Financial Statements
• PBOC sets USD/ CNY mid-point today at 7.2116 (vs. estimate at 7.3466)
• Intel is set to announce plans to cut more than 20% of its staff
• ECB's Villeroy warns that Trump's trade policies will weaken financial stability & growth
• Japan flash April manufacturing PMI 48.5 (prior 48.4)
• JP Morgan forecast gold prices above US$4K by Q2 2026
• Trump and Xi to meet in early May
• Trump's China reversal - now we await China's response (if any)
• Australian S&P Global Manufacturing PMI Flash reading for April 2025: 51.7 (prior 52.1)
• More from Fed's Kugler: Facing potential shocks, mainly from tariffs and uncertainty
• Trump said had no intention of firing Fed Chair Powell (he did). Major reversal from Trump
• US to push the UK to lower its tariffs on autos, relax ag rules
• ICYMI: Citi says tariffs a stagflationary shock to US economy, 40-45% chance of recession
• EUR, JPY, GBP down vs. USD. AUD, NZD, CAD too. Trump cave in on pet issues cited.
• Fed's Kugler says higher than expected tariffs likely to send prices higher
• Tesla CEO Musk says time he spends on DOGE will drop significantly from May
• Trump backing away from tariffs, backing away from firing Powell - will it last?
• Trump says he has no plans to Fire Federal Reserve Chair Powell
• Trump says he is going to be very nice to China, they have to make a deal
• North American Forexlive Americas FX news wrap 22 Apr: Sell US shifts to Buy US today.
• IMF Managing Director Georgieva: Biggest priority is to resolve trade tensions
• Oil: private survey of inventory shows a much bigger headline crude oil draw than expected
• Shares suspended in FX risk management firm - now in talks about emergency sale to a rival
• Trade ideas thread - Wednesday, 23 April, insightful charts, technical analysis, ideas
• Tesla earnings: Revenue of $19.335B vs $21.111B expected

The big swings after the US close began with Trump striking a markedly softer tone on China, telling reporters that the U.S. is “doing fine” with Beijing and that he would be “very nice” in any trade talks. Still, he warned that if no agreement is reached, Washington will dictate terms — a statement that underscores this is a pause, not a pivot.

More significantly, Trump also signalled a commitment to Fed independence, stating explicitly that he does not intend to fire Chair Jerome Powell. This immediately buoyed markets, easing recent fears over institutional and financial stability.

After a strong rally during the US Tuesday session, equities extended gains following Trump’s comments on Powell. The US dollar also strengthened: EUR/USD dropped below 1.1320 and USD/JPY surged past 143.00. Gold prices continued their retreat.

Still, caution lingers. As one market strategist noted, “a sudden rhetorical shift is not a policy pivot.” Attention now turns to Beijing, with markets watching closely for any response to Washington’s apparent softening — or its absence.

As liquidity returned, the dollar reversed course. EUR/USD and USD/JPY fully retraced their moves, while AUD/USD and NZD/USD are now higher than levels seen before Trump’s remarks. US equity index futures are holding on to most — though not all — of their gains.

Gold also rebounded from its earlier lows, before coming under renewed pressure in the past hour on news that the Shanghai Gold Exchange has increased the trade margin for some gold futures contracts to 13% from 12%.

Tesla made headlines after reporting a 71% plunge in quarterly profits, with underlying operations swinging to a loss once EV credits and one-off items were stripped out. Analysts flagged growing reputational risks, particularly related to CEO Elon Musk’s high-profile involvement in the Trump administration. Musk said he plans to significantly scale back his time on the "DOGE" initiative in the coming month, though the implications for broader sentiment around the brand remain unclear.